O'Neill v Williams [2006] NSWSC 707

New South Wales Supreme Court

CITATION : O'Neill v Williams [2006] NSWSC 707

HEARING DATE(S) : 29/6/06-30/6/06

JUDGMENT DATE : 30 June 2006

JURISDICTION : Equity Division

JUDGMENT OF : Brereton J

EX TEMPORE JUDGMENT DATE : 06/30/2006

DECISION : Declaration that plaintiff is entitled to continue to reside in premises whileever she pays the council and water rates, keeps the premises insured, and keeps the property and premises in good repair; upon conditions that she reimburse to defendants any amount which the defendants have paid in respect of rates or insurance or maintenance during the period 1 March 2003 to date, and permits an annual inspection. Order that the defendants be restrained from interfering or causing, permitting or suffering interference with the plaintiff's right of residence.

CATCHWORDS : EQUITY – ESTOPPEL – Proprietary estoppel – Right of residence – irrevocability resulting from reliance on expectation of indefinite or lifetime right to remain - where plaintiffs have expectation that in return for plaintiff's (deceased) husband doing the carpentry for house on defendants' property free of charge, plaintiffs would be permitted to occupy property indefinitely, provided that they paid a concessional rent while the mortgage remained outstanding, and after they ceased to make those payments, paid the rates and insurance, and maintained the property – where expectation acted upon by building house without remuneration and fitting it out in a manner which suited plaintiffs who thereafter occupied it - where defendants induced plaintiffs to adopt expectation and encouraged their reliant activity by being party to the understanding from which the expectation arose - held, it would be unconscionable for defendants to deny truth of expectation, so long as plaintiffs performed their obligations of paying the concessional rent, and thereafter rates insurances and maintenance - whether plaintiff disentitled from enforcing equity by default in performance of condition to which expectation equity was subject - where parties by arrangement substituted different obligations to pay concessional rent – where mortgage would have been discharged if defendants had acted in accordance with expectations – held, plaintiff bound to pay arrears of rates insurances and maintenance as condition of relief – Remedies – minimum equity – where equity is expectation based – prima facie parties should be held to the expectation.